Scapular

ABSTRACT

A religious object having a necklace, including a pendant, and a piece of wool. The piece of wool is disposed within a cavity of the pendant such that the piece of wool is exposed to the body.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to religious sacraments and moreparticularly, to a brown scapular of religious significance.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

The scapular is a form of clothing worn by monks when they were working.The scapular is a long strip of cloth, generally the width of the body,worn over the shoulders (scapula) from the front to the back and down tothe ankles.

Derived from the scapulars worn by monks are symbolic scapulars. Such ascapular is two pieces of cloth (generally about an inch square),connected by cloth cords and worn over the head. It often has a pictureor a particular color, depending on the spirituality it stands for. Withthe passage of time, people began to give symbolic meaning to thescapular. In some religious Orders, such as the Carmelites, the Scapularturned into a sign of their way of life. The Scapular came to symbolizethe special dedication of Carmelites to Mary, the Mother of God, and toexpress trust in her motherly protection as well as the desire to belike her in her commitment to Christ and to others. Thus it became asign of Mary. The brown scapular is a sign approved by the Church andaccepted by the Carmelite Order as an external sign of love for Mary, ofthe trust her children have in her, and of commitment to live like her.

Unfortunately the known scapulars of today do not wear well.Conventional scapulars are either all cloth, selectively covered inplastic, or all metal. Cloth scapulars become worn with time and mayeventually fall apart. Plastic may be used to cover the cloth pendants,however, the cloth necklace remains exposed and may still eventuallybreak thus rendering the scapular un-usable. Thus, cloth and plasticscapulars must continually be replaced. Frequent replacement does notprovide continuity in the keeping and wearing of the scapular.Conventional metal scapulars exists, however, they do not incorporateany wool cloth. Thus, the importance and symbolism of the wool cloth isignored.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed towards a metal scapular having anecklace, including a pendant, and a piece of cloth. The pendantincludes a cavity and the piece of cloth is disposed within the cavity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front view of a scapular according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 is a back view of the scapular according to one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 is a side view of one pendant of the scapular according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a front view of one pendant of the scapular having a hingeaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a rear view of one pendant of the scapular attached to a chainby an alternate embodiment according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to FIGS. 1-3, a scapular 10 is shown according to oneembodiment of the present invention. The scapular 10 is generally wornaround the neck. Scapular 10 includes a necklace 12, two pendants 14, 16and a piece of wool 18. Necklace 12 includes a first and second chain 12a and 12 b, respectively. Pendant 14 is attached to first chain 12 a atan attachment point 15 a. Pendant 16 is attached to first chain 12 a atan attachment point 15 b. First chain 12 a is longer than second chain12 b. First and second chains 12 a, 12 b are connected together suchthat both ends of second chain 12 b are connected to first chain 12 a.As best shown in FIG. 1, one end of second chain 12 b may be connectedto first chain 12 a, for example, where first chain 12 a is connected topendant 14. The opposing end of second chain 12 b may be connected tochain 12 a, for example, at the midpoint of first chain 12 a. First andsecond chains 12 a, 12 b form a loop 20 by which the scapular 10 may beplaced around the neck of a person (not shown) wearing the scapular 10.Properly worn, pendant 14 rests upon the front torso of the wearer,while pendant 16 hangs behind the wearer.

Referring to FIG. 1, front face 22 of pendant 14 and front face 24 ofpendant 16 are shown according to one embodiment of the presentinvention. Front face 22 of pendant 14 may depict a religious pictorial.In the illustrated embodiment, face 22 of pendant 14 has a picture ofOur Lady of Mt. Carmel. Front face 24 of pendant 16 may recite areligious prayer or scripture. In the illustrated embodiment, pendant 16contains a scripture associated with Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. However, itcan be appreciated that the present invention is not limited to theillustrated embodiments and can be practiced with any number ofreligious pictorials and prayers or scriptures.

Likewise, rear face 26 of pendent 14 and rear face 28 of pendent 16 areshown according to one embodiment of the present invention. Referring toFIG. 2, rear faces 26, 28 of pendants 14 and 16, respectively, may havean insignia of a cross 30. The cross 30 may be centered around anopening 32. However, it can be appreciated that the present invention isnot limited to the illustrated embodiment and may be practiced with anypicture and any scripture on front faces 22, 24 of pendants 14 and 16.Moreover, the present invention may be practiced with only one insigniaof cross 30 on either pendant 14 or pendant 16 or no insignia at all.Finally, the scapular of the present invention may be practiced with anysize and shape of opening 32, so long as opening 32 allows the wearer tobe in contact with the wool 18.

Front face 22 and rear face 26 of pendant 14 are held together by anattachment mechanism, illustrated without limitations, as pins 34positioned at the four corners of pendants 14. Pins 34 hold front andrear faces 22, 26 of pendant 14 together such that an open cavity 36 isformed between front and rear faces 22, 26. Similarly, front and rearfaces 24, 28 of pendant 16 are held together by pins 34 such that anopen cavity (not shown) similar to open cavity 36 is formed betweenfront and rear faces 24, 28. Wool 18 is placed within cavity 36, as bestillustrated in FIG. 3. Wool 18 may be felt through opening 32, such thatwool 18 may generally be in contact with the skin of the wearer.Typically, wool 18 is approximately the size of pendants 14 and 16,however, wool 18 may be of any desired size so long as wool 18 may befelt through opening 32. Preferably, wool 18 is smaller in size thanpendants 14 or 16 due to space restrictions on the open cavity 36 bypins 34.

Alternatively, the attachment mechanism may also include a hinge 38 asshown in FIG. 4. The hinge 38 may be positioned along one edge ofpendants 14 and 16, pivotally attaching front and rear faces 22, 26 ofpendant 14 together, and front and rear faces 24, 28 of pendant 16together. Hinge 38 allows front and rear faces to pivotally open toexpose wool 18. Pins 34 may still be placed along the two cornersopposite hinge 38 of each pendant to secure front and rear faces of thependants together and prevent wool 18 from falling out of cavity 36. Alatch (not shown) may be placed along an edge opposite of the hinge 38to secure front and rear faces of the pendants. The hinge 38 and latchattachment means allows the wearer to quickly and easily access cavity36 and wool 18. However, the present invention is not limited to theattachment means illustrated, but may also include means such as anadhesive, wire, or the like.

FIG. 5 illustrates an alternate embodiment of the present invention.Pendants 14 and 16 may be attached to necklace 12 at two attachmentpoints. Having two attachment points allows pendants 14 and 16 to hangevenly against the wearer. Additionally, having two attachment pointsmay also eliminate the need for having pins 34 on the two corners inclosest proximity to the two attachment points.

The necklace 12 and the two pendants 14, 16 of the present invention arepreferably manufactured from metal. The metal provides the necklace 12and the two pendants 14, 16 with robustness for use in variousenvironments. The metal protects wool 18 from environmental elements,for example, from exposure to the sun and moisture. Furthermore, metalmay be easily stamped or engraved. Thus, the necklace 12 and the twopendants 14, 16 of the present invention may be manufactured in largequantities using a stamping machine, or individually hand-crafted by anengraver.

Conventional scapulars are either all cloth, selectively covered inplastic, or metal. Cloth scapulars become worn with time and mayeventually fall apart. Plastic may be used to cover the cloth pendants,however, the cloth necklace remains exposed and may still eventuallybreak thus rendering the scapular un-usable. Conventional metalscapulars are durable, however, they do not include any wool cloth.Thus, conventional metal scapulars do not incorporate the importance andthe symbolism surrounding the pieces of cloth.

On the other hand, the scapular 10 of the present invention incorporatesboth modern durability and tradition. Metal is more long-lasting thancloth, and because individual scapulars may have sentimental value, themetal scapular 10 of the present invention offers the wearer anopportunity to use the scapular 10 longer than conventional scapulars.Additionally, the scapular 10 of the present invention incorporates thewool cloth 18, and the religious symbolism associated with the wool. Itcan be noted that the wool cloth 18 of may be of various colors,depending on the of the religious preferences of the person wearing thescapular.

Moreover, the front and rear faces 22, 24, 26, 28 of each pendant 14 and16 may be easily separated so that the piece of wool 18 may be replacedif necessary, without replacing the entire scapular 10.

While certain preferred embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed, the invention is not limited to the illustrations describedand shown herein, which are deemed to be merely illustrative of the bestmodes of carrying out the invention. A person of ordinary skill in theart will realize that certain modifications and variations will comewithin the teachings of this invention and that such variations andmodifications are within its spirit and the scope as defined by theclaims.

1. A religious object comprising: a necklace having a pendant; and atleast one piece of wool; wherein said pendant includes a cavity andwherein said at least one piece of wool is disposed within said cavityof said pendant.
 2. A religious object as recited in claim 1, whereinsaid pendant is made from a metal.
 3. (cancel)
 4. A religious object asrecited in claim 1, wherein said religious object further includes asecond pendant, said second pendant includes a cavity, and wherein asecond at least one piece of wool is disposed within said cavity of saidsecond pendant.
 5. A religious object as recited in claim 4, whereinsaid pendants each include an opening, exposing said at least one piecesof wool from within said cavities.
 6. A religious scapula comprising: anecklace; first and second pendants; and a plurality of pieces of wool;wherein said first and second pendants each include a cavity, andwherein said plurality of pieces of cloth are disposed respectivelywithin said cavities of said first and second pendants.
 7. A religiousscapular as recited in claim 6, wherein said necklace includes first andsecond chains forming a loop, said first pendant is secured to saidfirst chain, and wherein said second pendant is secured to said firstand second chains.
 8. A religious scapular as recited in claim 6,wherein said first and second pendants include an opening, and whereinsaid opening exposes said pieces of wool within said cavities.
 9. Areligious scapular as recited in claim 6, wherein said first and secondpendants are made from a metal.
 10. (cancel)
 11. A religious scapularcomprising: a necklace; a pendant having a front and a rear face; apiece of wool; wherein said pendant is secured to said necklace, whereinan open cavity is disposed between said front and rear face of saidpendant, and wherein said piece of wool is disposed within said cavity.12. A religious scapular as recited in, claim 11, wherein said pendantis made from a metal.
 13. (cancel)
 14. A religious scapular as recitedin claim 11, wherein said rear face of said pendant includes anaperture, such that said piece of wool within said open cavity isexposed.